Advent Devotional – Monday, November 30, 2020 – Righteous Work

Scripture:  Isaiah 32:16-18 –

¹⁶ The Lord’s justice will dwell in the desert,
    his righteousness live in the fertile field.
¹⁷ The fruit of that righteousness will be peace;
    its effect will be quietness and confidence forever.
¹⁸ My people will live in peaceful dwelling places,
    in secure homes,
    in undisturbed places of rest.

Last Advent, I convinced my family I could bake dinner rolls. Nothing fancy, but they sopped up gravy and went well with butter. It was nice to do a small part to help bring the meal together. When we prepare for large get-togethers, there is a lot of organizing and preparation that goes into each meal. When the day comes though, we feel peace.

In our passage from Isaiah, we are reminded of the hope for a day when peace, security, and quiet are available to everyone. We are reminded that day will come about through fruitful righteousness, people acting just and right in the intimacy of homes and the anonymity of the wilderness. This can seem like an impossible task, and without God, it would be.

Nobody expects you to redeem the world by yourself. Jesus didn’t walk among us to be alone; rather, Jesus dwells among us, bringing us together for righteousness sake! You don’t need to make the whole righteousness meal, so to speak, but you could be the rolls person!

Prayer: Most merciful, Lord, you who loved us before we could love you, continue to grace us with the desire and ability to do what is righteous, so we too can seek after your peace through your son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen.

  – Pete Geoffrion – Winchester, VA

Central Church’s Sanctuary Decorated for Christmas

Forgiving: Take the Risk, Find the Joy – Cultivating a Heart of Grace

Forgiving those who’ve hurt us is about so much more than simply saying, “I forgive you.”

It’s about understanding our shortcomings and sinfulness before our loving and merciful God.

 It’s about cultivating a heart and attitude of grace, mercy, and humility.

And it’s about striving to live out—through the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit—the commands and principles found in today’s study passage.

 

Key Study Passage:

Romans 12: 14-21

1. Read this passage two or three times, and then write down or discuss the traits of a man who lives out these verses.  Think about or describe someone you know who takes the commands of this passage seriously.

 

2. What sayings of Jesus does Paul allude to in verse 14? (See  Matthew 5:44; Luke 6: 27-28.)

 

 

3. Why is it so important to live in “harmony with each other” (v. 16)? (See John 13: 34-35.)

 

4. According to the last part of verse 16 and the first part of 17, what helps promote harmony?

 

 

5. Instead of seeking revenge, what are we commanded to do? (See vv. 19-20.)

 

6. Write down or discuss a practical way to practice verse 21.

 

Spend Time in Prayer:

Turn three or four commands from today’sdevotional passage into prayers that would be appropriate for your current situation (i.e., prayers of thanksgiving, confession, specific requests for personal help/guidance).

 

Romans 12:14-21

14 Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. 15 Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!

17 Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. 18 Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.

19 Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say,

“I will take revenge;
I will pay them back,”
says the Lord.

20 Instead,

“If your enemies are hungry, feed them.
If they are thirsty, give them something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap
burning coals of shame on their heads.”

21 Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Heavenly Father, thank you for being a loving God who daily extends grace and mercy!  Forgive me for those times I refuse to let go of anger and bitterness.  Give me the grace and mercy needed to forgive those who’ve wronged me.

 

 

In Memoriam: Sheila Klugh

We regret to announce that Sheila Klugh, wife of Dick Klugh, died early today following a long illness.

Details concerning a memorial service at Central Church commemorating the life of this important member of the Central Church family will be announced in the coming days.

COVID-19 – Beaver County Moves Deeper into SUBSTANTIAL

Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of November 20, 2020.

FYI – Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of November 20, 2020.

As you can see, the two metrics have increased substantially again since last week, which now clearly shows that we are in the Third Wave in our area. 

• The Incidence Rate is the highest it has been since the readings were published starting in August, moving higher into the Substantial category. 
• The PCR Positivity Rate has now also moved higher into the Substantial category.

• • Beaver County remains classified as SUBSTANTIAL.

(If either metric is Substantial, the PA Dept. of Health’s recommended school instructional model is Full Remove Learning.)

• As the pandemic’s severity increases in our area to new highs, our dedicated Trustees are redoubling their efforts to ensure our building is disinfected prior to every worship service or feeding ministry event.

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https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/coronavirus/Pages/Monitoring-Dashboard.aspx

 

Forgiving: Take the Risk, Find the Joy – Facing My Hard Heart

Key Bible Verse:  “But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.”   – Mark 11:25

Dig Deeper:  Matthew 18: 21-35

The greater the hurt or injustice, the less I want to move toward forgiveness.  It seems as though it lets the people who hurt me get away with it.

That’s when I turn to what I call the prayer of permission.  It’s a prayer I pray when I have no desire or motivation to do what I know I should do.

It’s a simple prayer in which I give God permission to change the way I feel about a person or situation.

I don’t ask him to help me forgive.  I’ve usually asked that and gotten nowhere, because I didn’t really want to forgive in the first place.  So I back up one step and give God permission to change the way I feel, to make me want to forgive.

The beauty of this prayer is that it forces me to squarely face the hardness of my heart and my subconscious resistance.  I quit fighting.

Once I do, the result is almost always a rapid shift in my thinking.  Forgiving no longer seems like such a bad idea.  And once it no longer seems like a bad idea, it’s not so hard to do.

—Larry Osborne in Ten Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe

 

My Response: The next time I struggle with forgiving someone, I will pray my own version of Larry’s prayer of permission.

 

Thought to Apply: I choose peace.… I will live forgiven. I will forgive so that I may live.—Max Lucado (pastor, writer)

Adapted from Ten Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe (Multnomah, 2009)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Heavenly Father, thank you for being a loving God who daily extends grace and mercy!  Forgive me for those times I refuse to let go of anger and bitterness.  Give me the grace and mercy needed to forgive those who’ve wronged me.

 

 

Thanksgiving Day

Key Bible Verse: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”  – Philippians 4:6, NASB

Dig Deeper:  Psalm 100

Thanksgiving is definitely one of my favorite holidays, especially considering the five “f’s” it includes: faith, family, food, football, and the four-day weekend.  As far as I’m concerned, that’s a tough combination to beat.

And talk about positive and upbeat!  Pausing to express gratitude for one’s blessings breathes life into anyone’s soul.  Even in times of trial and heartache, when it’s most difficult to see life’s glass as half full instead of half empty, stopping to give thanks makes a difference.

Thanksgiving’s such a great holiday—it’s a shame we celebrate it only once a year.  Maybe we should change that fact.

Consider again Paul’s words in today’s Key Bible Verse: I see the phrase “with thanksgiving” as a secret that Paul has learned, enabling him to find contentment in spite of his circumstances.  Thanksgiving is a critical ingredient.

When we humbly bring ourselves and our requests before God (supplication), we should do that “with thanksgiving.”  What a privilege to be able to bring our requests to him, and what a benefit to know that he’ll answer in a way and in a time that are perfect for us.  These truths provide us with good reason to give thanks.

—Don Cousins in Unexplainable

 

My Response: During my prayer times over the next several days, I will consciously thank God for at least one blessing in my life.

 

Thought to Apply: All our discontents about what we want appear to me to spring from the want of thankfulness for what we have.—Daniel Defoe (British writer, journalist)

Adapted from Unexplainable (Cook, 2009).

 

Thanksgiving Prayer:  Dear heavenly Father, thank you for providing for my daily needs; help me to find my contentment in you and you alone, so that I might experience the kind of peace that’s unexplainable apart from you.

A Thanksgiving Prayer

Father in Heaven!  You have loved us first, help us never to forget that You are love so that this sure conviction might triumph in our hearts over the seduction of the world, over the inquietude of the soul, over the anxiety for the future, over the fright of the past, over the distress of the moment.

But grant also that this conviction might discipline our soul so that our heart might remain faithful and sincere in the love which we bear to all those whom You have commanded us to love as we love ourselves.

                                                               – Soren Kierkegaard

From the friendly folks at Central Church, may you have a blessed Thanksgiving holiday!

 As part of our Thanksgiving, we thank God for the opportunity to provide free warm and nutritious food for body and soul to many people in the City of Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania.

 This holiday, let us cultivate a Thanksgiving for the people God has placed in our lives.

Forgiving: Take the Risk, Find the Joy – God’s Gift

“After the Battle of Grunwald: The Solidarity of the Northern Slavs.”

Key Bible Verse:  Dear friends, never take revenge.  Leave that to the righteous anger of God.  For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord.  – Romans 12:19

Dig Deeper:  Romans 12: 14-21

Sam (not his real name) sat in my counseling office one rainy morning, holding his head in his hands and sobbing uncontrollably.  In the middle of his tears, he cried out, “But I just can’t forgive him for what he has done to me.  I just can’t let him get away with that.”

It took a lot of persuading to convince Sam that his unforgiveness was never going to affect the person responsible for his pain—a guy who lived many miles away.

Sam spent more than half his life drinking the poison of unforgiveness, fully expecting to poison the one who’d brought him so much pain.  But all he managed to accomplish was to make himself sick.

By allowing the one who caused his pain to rent space inside his head, Sam experienced daily torment for many years.

Sam was unwilling to forgive until he finally understood that forgiveness was God’s gift to him.  He was the one who stood to benefit by forgiving the one who’d hurt him.

In his prayer that morning, Sam asked Jesus to make him willing to remove his hands from around his perpetrator’s throat.  He made the decision to leave judgment and revenge in God’s hands.

The one who was set free in my office that morning was Sam, not the one responsible for Sam’s pain.

—Lew Gervais

 

My Response:  Why is it healthy to believe that God is the final judge and the final avenger?

 

Thought to Apply:  There is no torment like the inner torment of an unforgiving spirit. —Chuck Swindoll (pastor, writer)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Heavenly Father, thank you for being a loving God who daily extends grace and mercy!  Forgive me for those times I refuse to let go of anger and bitterness.  Give me the grace and mercy needed to forgive those who’ve wronged me.

 

Thanksgiving – A Prayer

Forgiving: Take the Risk, Find the Joy – The Choice

Key Bible Verse:  “And forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.”  – Matthew 6:12

Dig Deeper:  Matthew 6: 12-14

A Christian acquaintance whose wife had an open fling with another man told of how he felt the inner sanctum of his heart had been trashed.  Even after she returned and said it had been a mistake, he felt the inevitability of divorce.  But while sorting out his options, he was surprised to be given, as a Christian, not only the grace to forgive at a specific moment, but more importantly, the possibility to live in forgiveness.

Of course, it was work.  But all told, in the midst of his anguish, he eventually could not think of anything important that he would lose by forgiving—except his “pride.”  He could choose to see his wife as having temporarily lost her bearings.  How human she was, to trade lifelong integrity for momentary flaring desire.  How outrageous! How deserving she was of being despised!

But at the same time there was another option: the pain-discovered possibility of the unique joy in forgiveness.  What, my friend asked himself, would be gained by not accepting this option?  And what was his Lord calling him to?  What was the satisfaction of wounded pride worth, in the long run?  Is forgiveness any more illogical than vengeance?

—John Ruth in Forgiveness

 

My Response: If I were the guy in this story, would I be willing to do the hard work of forgiveness?  Why or why not?

 

Thought to Apply: Forgiveness is God’s command. —Martin Luther (leader of the Protestant Reformation)

Adapted from Forgiveness (Herald Press, 2007)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Heavenly Father, thank you for being a loving God who daily extends grace and mercy!  Forgive me for those times I refuse to let go of anger and bitterness.  Give me the grace and mercy needed to forgive those who’ve wronged me.

 

 

Forgiving: Take the Risk, Find the Joy – The Road of Faith

Key Bible Verse:  “Love your enemies! Do good to them.”  – Luke 6:35

Dig Deeper:  Luke 6: 35-37

[continued from yesterday]  “I know lots of young people my age who are bitter, who are acting out violently,” said Cathy.  “Some of them are even dead now.… Fighting terror with terror is not the way.”

To forgive another person takes a tremendous act of faith, because in forgiving we choose to surrender our need to control a situation to satisfy our longings and intentions. To transfer a situation from our hands into God’s requires one to believe that God has witnessed the wrong and that God will not dismiss that wrong as something trivial or insignificant.

In the process of forgiving we say, “I give this situation to God and believe that in the eternal scheme of things, God’s justice and grace will bring about a resolution better than I could ever make.”

Fortunately, a mother in Northern Ireland years ago decided that her home would not become a haven of anger and hatred, a breeding ground for young terrorists.  Instead, she took the road of faith.

Because of that choice, her 20-year-old daughter now serves as a missionary to children in the inner city.  She is a young woman who loves instead of hates, who gives life instead of destroys it, and who lives each day as a witness to the power of forgiveness.

—Bruce Main in Spotting the Sacred

 

My Response: What messages am I communicating to my family about revenge and forgiveness?  To friends?  To neighbors?  To co-workers?

 

Thought to Apply: Never does the human soul appear so strong and noble as when it forgoes revenge and dares to forgive an injury.  —Edwin Hubbel Chapin (preacher, writer, editor)

Adapted from Spotting the Sacred (Baker, 2006)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Heavenly Father, thank you for being a loving God who daily extends grace and mercy!  Forgive me for those times I refuse to let go of anger and bitterness.  Give me the grace and mercy needed to forgive those who’ve wronged me.

 

 

Forgiving: Take the Risk, Find the Joy – Aren’t You Angry?

Key Bible Verse:  And don’t say, “Now I can pay them back for what they’ve done to me!  I’ll get even with them!”  – Proverbs 24:29

Dig Deeper:  Ephesians 4: 31-32

The university class I was teaching had just finished reading some fascinating and troubling material on the impact of sustained violence on children in various parts of the world.

“They didn’t write about Northern Ireland,” complained Roz in her thick Belfast brogue.  “There’s three of us from Ireland in this class.  We grew up with violence all around us.”

“My father was killed by an IRA bomb when I was 6,” another young woman said abruptly.  The class was silent, and I was caught off guard.

“Aren’t you angry, Cathy?” I asked her, wondering how a young woman whose father was brutally murdered could not be.

“No,” she said without an edge to her voice.  “I was raised in a home by a mother who taught me to forgive, so the seeds of anger and bitterness never had a chance to grow.  My mother modeled forgiveness for all us children.”

She had no hint of repressed bitterness in her voice.  Rather, she had chosen to forgive, which obviously had made a profound difference for her.  That choice had separated her from others her own age—others who had chosen to hold on to their anger, allowing it to fester into suppressed rage. [continued tomorrow]

—Bruce Main in Spotting the Sacred

 

My Response:  How can I tell if I or someone I know has truly forgiven or is simply living with “repressed bitterness”?

Adapted from Spotting the Sacred (Baker, 2006)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Heavenly Father, thank you for being a loving God who daily extends grace and mercy!  Forgive me for those times I refuse to let go of anger and bitterness.  Give me the grace and mercy needed to forgive those who’ve wronged me.

 

 

Daily Bible Readings – Revised Common Lectionary – November 22-28, 2020

Here for your personal daily devotions are the daily lectionary readings for November 22-28, 2020:

• Monday, November 23, 2020:
  Semi-continuous: Psalm 7; Esther 2:1-18; 2 Timothy 2:8-13
  Complementary: Psalm 28; Numbers 27:15-23; 2 Timothy 2:8-13

• Tuesday, November 24, 2020:
  Semi-continuous: Psalm 7; Esther 8:3-17; Revelation 19:1-9
  Complementary: Psalm 28; Zechariah 11:4-17; Revelation 19:1-9

• Wednesday, November 25, 2020:
  Semi-continuous: Psalm 7; Ezekiel 33:7-20; John 5:19-40
  Complementary: Psalm 28; Jeremiah 31:10-14; John 5:19-40

• Thursday, November 26, 2020: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Zechariah 13:1-9; Revelation 14:6-13

• Friday, November 27, 2020: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Zechariah 14:1-9; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-18

• Saturday, November 28, 2020: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Micah 2:1-13; Matthew 24:15-31

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What is the Revised Common Lectionary?

The Revised Common Lectionary is a three-year cycle of weekly lections used to varying degrees by the vast majority of mainline Protestant churches in Canada and the United States.  The RCL is built around the seasons of the Church Year, and includes four lections for each Sunday, as well as additional readings for major feast days.

During most of the year, the lections are: a reading from the Hebrew Bible, a Psalm, a reading from the Epistles, and a Gospel reading.  During the season of Easter, the Hebrew Bible lection is usually replaced with one from the Acts of the Apostles.

The seasons of the Church Year reflect the life of Christ.  Consequently, the gospel lections for each Sunday provide the focus for that day. The other lections for a given day generally have a thematic relationship to the gospel reading for that day, although this is not always the case.

In Ordinary Time, the Revised Common Lectionary offers two sets of readings for the lessons from the Hebrew Bible.

• One set proceeds mostly continuously, giving the story of the Patriarchs and the Exodus in Year A, the monarchial narratives in Year B, and readings from the Prophets in Year C.
• In the other set of readings for Ordinary Time, the readings from the Hebrew Bible are thematically related to the gospel lections. Denominations or local churches generally use either the semicontinuous readings or the thematic readings during Ordinary Time. They do not typically move back and forth between the two over the course of a single season.

The gospel readings for each year come from one of the synoptic gospels according to the following pattern:

• Year A – Matthew
• Year B – Mark
• Year C – Luke

Readings from the Gospel of John can be found throughout the RCL.

Central Church

Central Church – Online Worship Service – Sunday, November 22, 2020

On this 25th Sunday after Pentecost, when the coronavirus prevents many of us from gathering in Central Church’s Sanctuary to worship in body, let us join together in spirit for with our online worship experience!

This Sunday is our annual Thankoffering Sunday, and our worship service is led by our United Methodist Women organization.  Anne Colella-Murray, of the Women’s Center of Beaver County is our guest speaker.

To begin, simply click on the photo below to join with the folks who have already made their way into our digital Sanctuary:

Central Church

Central Church hosts Thanksgiving meal

Sharing a communal meal is a Thanksgiving tradition.

History tells us one of the first gratitude gatherings occurred in 1621 in Plymouth, Mass., when Pilgrims shared a meal with Native Americans.

Expressing thanks for blessings continues when Americans gather Nov. 28 to celebrate Thanksgiving.

Some observe the national holiday at home, but at Central Church, as well as other locations in in Beaver County, it’s also become tradition for families, friends, neighbors and even strangers to gather at churches or community centers to share a communal meal.

This year, due to COVID-19, all of our meals must be take-out only.

At Central, our meals — served by volunteers — are free, and no advance reservations are required.

Central United Methodist Church

Where: 1227 Sixth Ave. in Beaver Falls

When: 11:30 am – 1:00 pm

Cost: Free to all.

Reservations: Not required.

Information: 724-846-3474.

• Our thanks to the 1810 Tavern & Eating House, Bridgewater, Pennsylvania (234 Bridge Street, Bridgewater PA 15009, (878) 201-3672) for cooking and donating all of the food for this year’s free Thanksgiving community meal.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Case for Christmas – New Advent Online Bible Study at Central Church!

You’re invited to join The Case for Christmas Online Bible Study Beginning November 30 and ending January 1, 2021.

Separate the holy day from the holiday, the facts from the fantasy, and the truth from the tradition!

The Case for Christmas is a 4-week free Online Bible Study that you can do on your own or with friends, family, and neighbors!

In this free Online Bible Study, you’ll explore the scenes surrounding the birth of Jesus—and see the Christmas story in a whole new light!  You’ll learn to separate the holiday from the holy day, the facts from the fantasy, and the truth from the tradition to know with confidence that the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ birth are accurate and true!

Register  now for The Case for Christmas Online Bible Study, starting November 30, 2020 and ending January 1, 2021.

• After you register, every Monday morning, you’ll receive an email message with a video lesson and that week’s information.

For more information, watch the introductory video with Lee Strobel at:   https://youtu.be/dVlpiRfEw8k

Mark Your Calendar!

Week 1:         November 30–December 6          Setting the Record Straight
Week 2:         December 7–13                               Beneath the Fake News
Week 3:         December 14–20                             A Mind-Boggling Proposition
Week 4:         December 21–27                             The Prophetic Fingerprint
Week 5:         December 28–January 1               Catch up: All sessions available

• Join the study today by going to BibleGateway/CFC !

In The Case for Christmas, you’ll look at the story surrounding the birth of Jesus—and how you can know that the events recorded in the Bible are historically true!

In each session you’ll explore:

• Whether the Christmas story actually happened or developed from the myths of the day
• The Bible’s claim that Jesus was born of a virgin and why it’s important to your faith
• How Jesus—and only Jesus—fulfilled hundreds of biblical prophecies about the Messiah

Join the study today by going to BibleGateway/CFC !

This Thanksgiving, Is God Thankful for You?

We live in an increasingly rude world. Everyone seems to act as if they are more important and what they’re doing is more significant than anyone else.  Next time you’re driving in traffic, leaving a crowded event, or exiting a plane, make note of how people expect to be treated like gods and goddesses while treating others like paupers and peasants. Sadly, technology has only made things worse. The more biting, harsh, and critical people are, seemingly the more followers and fans they amass online.

 To varying degrees, we’re all guilty of participating in our culture of rudeness. Which of us hasn’t become jealous when others succeed? Yet we hate it when we’re on the receiving end of this rudeness.

Ask yourself, “How does it feel to be neglected?” Are you frustrated when no one says thank you for a job well done? Are you tired of feeling overworked and underappreciated? Is getting more criticism than encouragement grinding you down? Do you wonder if all the time, energy, and money you put into church, work, and life are worth it? Do you find yourself wondering if anyone really cares?

Be Thankful if God is Thankful for You

If you’re a Christian feeling this way, there’s good news. God sees everything you do. God knows the sacrifices you make, the ways you’re growing, the people you serve, the times you’re generous, and the impact you make. And He is thankful for you!

I want you to read the following verses as a message from Jesus to you through Paul: “Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers.”  You are appreciated!  By God!

Particularly religious folks may bristle at the thought that the Lord appreciates what Christian individuals and churches do. They’re prone to turn simple gratitude into unnecessarily complex theology arguments. While it may sound spiritual to say that everything that happens is solely by God and that we can take no credit and deserve no appreciation for anything we do, it’s unbiblical and ungrateful.

The reality is that we are God’s “workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”b The word workmanship used by Paul denotes that we are God’s work of art or poem. Just as we do with works of art made by artists in this world, we can take enjoyment in, praise, and appreciate the work of art itself while giving ultimate credit to the artist who created it.

Be Thankful if God Is Working in and Through You

To be sure, our lives and any holiness, obedience, or fruitfulness we enjoy are empowered and enabled by the grace of God through the power of the Holy Spirit. But God often chooses to work through people who desire to do his will, obey his commands, lean upon his grace, and are filled with the Spirit. Paul himself demonstrated this, saying, “By the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.”cIt’s grievous when, out of the good desire to reserve all glory for God, we forget to also appreciate those through whom God works.

God is as equally glorified when we praise him for his unmediated grace as when we’re thankful for those through whom he chooses to deliver it. This is why throughout Ephesians Paul not only praised God but also appreciated people. In Ephesians 1:15–16 alone, he stated appreciation for the people’s “faith in the Lord Jesus” and their “love for all the saints,” saying “[I] do not cease to give thanks for you.”

The point is clear: we’re to thank God for being faithful to his people and to thank his people for being faithful to him.Paul’s appreciation for the people was incredibly personal. Much of his service was to the churches in and around Ephesus, which was the only city in which he ministered for an extended period of time.

Just before leaving Asia Minor for Jerusalem, Paul asked the Ephesian church elders to join him in the neighboring city of Miletus, where he gave a prolonged, heartfelt speech, knowing he would likely never return.  The love and appreciation Paul and the Christians in Ephesus shared is movingly highlighted as Paul boarded the ship to leave them: “Then they all wept freely, and fell on Paul’s neck and kissed him, sorrowing most of all for the words which he spoke, that they would see his face no more.”fIt’s this sense of thankfulness that Paul expressed in his letter to the Ephesians. When Paul heard and saw of the Ephesians’ continued faithfulness toward Jesus and their dedication in serving him, he was thankful. In a world where fame, reputation, envy, resentment, and hatred were the norm, Paul responded with joy and thankfulness.

God Mentions People He is Thankful for in the Bible

Paul’s appreciation to God and others for loving service appears frequently throughout his letters. His appreciation is in response to the actions of both individuals and entire churches. Read the following examples, receiving them each slowly, deliberately, and personally, as if Paul had written about you specifically:

• Romans1:8: “First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you.”
• 1Corinthians 1:4: “I thank my God always concerning you.”
• Philippians1:3–5: “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now.”
• Colossians1:3: “We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you.”
• 1 Thessalonians 1:2–3: “We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”
• 1Thessalonians2:19–20:“For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? For you are our glory and joy.”
• 1Thessalonians3:9–10: “For what thanks can we render to God for you, for all the joy with which we rejoice for your sake before our God, night and day praying exceedingly that we may see your face and perfect what is lacking in your faith?”
• 2Thessalonians1:3: “We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other.”
• 2Thessalonians 2:13: “But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you.”
• 2Timothy1:3–4: “I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy.”
• Philemon4–5: “I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers, hearing of your love and faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints.”

How encouraged are you when you read those Scriptures? What things came to mind as specific examples of ways in which God is appreciative of you? Paul was keenly aware that none of his suffering or service to God was unseen by God.

Simply and significantly, he knew that God was thankful for him. This allowed him to press forward in spite of harsh criticism, lonely ostracism, and brutal opposition. It also made him more appreciative of servant-hearted Christians and compelled him to encourage them by saying often that both he and God appreciated them.

This Thanksgiving, as you thank God for all He has done for you, remind yourself that it is possible to live life as the kind of person that God is thankful for!

Forgiving: Take the Risk, Find the Joy – What Forgiving Others Isn’t

Who Said It … N. T. Wright

N. T. Wright is a leading New Testament scholar currently at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.

Prior to his position at St. Andrews, N. T. served as the bishop of Durham in the Church of England.

He is the author of numerous books including Justification, Surprised by Hope, Simply Christian, and Evil and the Justice of God—the book from which today’s devotional is taken.

N. T. and his wife, Maggie, have four adult children and three grandchildren.

 

What He Said … What Forgiving Others Isn’t

Forgiveness doesn’t mean “I didn’t really mind” or “it didn’t really matter.” I did mind and it did matter, otherwise there wouldn’t be anything to forgive, merely something to adjust my attitudes about.

Nor is forgiveness the same as saying, “Let’s pretend it didn’t really happen.”  This is a little trickier because part of the point of forgiveness is that I am committing myself to work toward the point where I can behave as if it hadn’t happened.

But it did happen, and forgiveness is looking hard at the fact that it did and making a conscious choice—a decision of the moral will—to set it aside so that it doesn’t come as a barrier between us.

In other words, forgiveness presupposes that the thing which happened was indeed evil and it cannot simply be set aside as irrelevant.  Along that route lies suppressed anger and a steady distancing of people who no longer trust one another.

A much better plan is to put things out on the table and deal with them.

Adapted from Evil and the Justice of God (IVP, 2006)

 

This week’s Key Study Passage:  Romans 12: 14-21

¹⁴ Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. ¹⁶ Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.^[a] Do not be conceited.

¹⁷ Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. ¹⁸ If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. ¹⁹ Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”^[b] says the Lord. ²⁰ On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”^[c]

²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Footnotes:

a.       Or willing to do menial work

b.      Deut. 32:35

c.       Prov. 25:21,22

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Heavenly Father, thank you for being a loving God who daily extends grace and mercy!  Forgive me for those times I refuse to let go of anger and bitterness.  Give me the grace and mercy needed to forgive those who’ve wronged me.

 

 

Leading with Love: The Key to Success

Without love, anything we do is futile (1 Corinthians 13:1-3).  That goes for work too.

People who take advantage of others in order to climb the corporate ladder often say they are just “getting ahead.”  They also often justify bending the rules to earn more profit.  This kind of thinking couldn’t be more warped.

Ultimately, any undertaking that is not motivated by love is destined for failure.  We as Christians should be at the forefront of modeling work practices that encourage love for neighbor and coworker.

Key Study Passage:

1 Corinthians 13:1-8

1. Why do you think these eight verses are so widely quoted?  Why is love such a central teaching of the Christian faith?

 

2. Which of the characteristics of love (vv. 4-7) do you see on display at your workplace?  Which ones are lacking?

 

3. What steps can you take to make your work culture and environment more conducive to loving others?

 

4. Talk to some friends at your church and compare notes about good practices you can apply to your respective workplaces.

 

Spend Time in Prayer: Thank God for your workplace and coworkers; ask him to make you an agent of his agape love.

 

1 Corinthians 13:1-8

13 If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 3 If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.

4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

8 Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever!

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, in the situations where I am a leader, help me to submit my pride and ambition to you and lead with love for those who follow.

 

Thanksgiving – Closed Stores 2020

Revised Common Lectionary – Bible Passages for Sunday, November 22, 2020

In preparation for our worship service this Sunday, for both in-person and online, here are the designated Bible passages from the Revised Common Lectionary.

This Sunday is our annual Thankoffering worship service conducted by members of our United Methodist Women.

Our guest speaker will be Anne Collella-Murray from the Women’s Center of Beaver County, and her message will focus upon the passage concerning the separation of the sheep and the goats at the Final Judgment.

Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24

34:11 For thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out.

34:12 As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.

34:13 I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited parts of the land.

34:14 I will feed them with good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and they shall feed on rich pasture on the mountains of Israel.

34:15 I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord GOD.

34:16 I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with justice.

34:20 Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD to them: I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep.

34:21 Because you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted at all the weak animals with your horns until you scattered them far and wide,

34:22 I will save my flock, and they shall no longer be ravaged; and I will judge between sheep and sheep.

34:23 I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd.

34:24 And I, the LORD, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them; I, the LORD, have spoken.

Psalm 100

100:1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth.

100:2 Worship the LORD with gladness; come into his presence with singing.

100:3 Know that the LORD is God. It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

100:4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, bless his name.

100:5 For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.

Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24

34:11 For thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out.

34:12 As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.

34:13 I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited parts of the land.

34:14 I will feed them with good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and they shall feed on rich pasture on the mountains of Israel.

34:15 I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord GOD.

34:16 I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with justice.

34:20 Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD to them: I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep.

34:21 Because you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted at all the weak animals with your horns until you scattered them far and wide,

34:22 I will save my flock, and they shall no longer be ravaged; and I will judge between sheep and sheep.

34:23 I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd.

34:24 And I, the LORD, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them; I, the LORD, have spoken.

Psalm 95:1-7a

95:1 O come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

95:2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

95:3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

95:4 In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also.

95:5 The sea is his, for he made it, and the dry land, which his hands have formed.

95:6 O come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!

95:7a For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.

Ephesians 1:15-23

1:15 I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason

1:16 I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers.

1:17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him,

1:18 so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints,

1:19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power.

1:20 God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,

1:21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come.

1:22 And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church,

1:23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Matthew 25:31-46

25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory.

25:32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats,

25:33 and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left.

25:34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world;

25:35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,

25:36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’

25:37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink?

25:38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing?

25:39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’

25:40 And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’

25:41 Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels;

25:42 for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,

25:43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’

25:44 Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’

25:45 Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’

25:46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Central Church on WBVP Sunday!

Although Central Church has resumed its in-person worship services at 11 am on Sundays, some people may not yet be able to attend due to COVID-19 concerns.

For anyone who does not feel comfortable with attending an in-person worship service, tune in at 10:30 A.M. on Sunday, November 22, to hear a recorded version of this week’s message from Central Church by Pastor Jan!

Here’s where to tune in:

• AM Radio – WBVP at 1230

• AM Radio – WMBA at 1460

• FM Radio – WBVP/WMBA at 99.3; and

• Online –   The Beaver County Radio Live Audio Stream at https://radio.securenetsystems.net/cirruscontent/WBVP

Be sure to tune in this Sunday at 10:30!

Leading with Love: From the Handbook

Key Bible Verse:  Love never fails.  – 1 Corinthians 13:8, NIV

Dig Deeper:  1 Corinthians 13:1-8

Basing the leadership behavior of an organization on the definition of agape love may strike you as a new or even revolutionary idea—and in the context of modern American organization practices, it is.

But the inspiration for using agape love as a leadership principle actually comes from one of the oldest and most respected authorities on human behavior in the world: the Bible.

Chapter 13 of 1 Corinthians is known as the “love chapter” because there the apostle Paul wrote: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7, NIV).

This is agape—and these are principles that will transform your organization, from the bottom line to the bottom of your employees’ hearts.  Love is patient, kind, trusting, unselfish, truthful, forgiving, and dedicated.

How these words get worked out in the context of a successful organization may surprise you, but remember, they are never an excuse to ignore poor performance or neglect the bottom line.

—Joel Manby in Love Works

 

My Response:  Which characteristics of love do I most need to work on?

 

Thought to Apply:  Joy is love exalted; peace is love in repose; long-suffering is love enduring; gentleness is love in society; goodness is love in action; faith is love on the battlefield; meekness is love in school; and temperance is love in training.—D. L. Moody (minister, evangelist)

Adapted from Love Works (Zondervan, 2012)

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, in the situations where I am a leader, help me to submit my pride and ambition to you and lead with love for those who follow.

 

Leading with Love: Love Actually Works

Key Bible Verses:  My dear children, let’s not just talk about love; let’s practice real love.  This is the only way we’ll know we’re living truly, living in God’s reality.  – 1 John 3:18-19, The message

Dig Deeper:  2 Peter 1:5-8

If agape love builds healthy relationships in all walks of life, why shouldn’t we always use it to build our organizations as well?

Why isn’t there more dialogue about how to create and maintain healthy relationships at work?   After all, common sense tells us that people will perform better if they are treated with respect and trust.

I have served in large and small organizations, public and private, and also on boards of several nonprofit and for-profit organizations.  After more than 30 years of witnessing all forms of organizational structures, I am still surprised at how willingly we discuss strategy and how to increase profit but how loath we are to discuss how to build and maintain a successful corporate culture by consistently treating all employees in a way that attracts and keeps the best talent in all levels of the organization.

Agape love is a leadership principle that holds leaders accountable and helps any organization become healthier and more enthusiastic.  That is why I submit that we should never leave love at the door when we come to work.

On the contrary, love works.  Think about love the verb, not love the emotion.  Think commitment and will, not feelings, and you will start to see how love works.

—Joel Manby in Love Works

 

My Response:  What lessons have I learned this week that I can apply to my own life?

 

Thought to Apply:  When love is felt, the message is heard.—Jim Vaus (converted former gangster)

Adapted from Love Works (Zondervan, 2012)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, in the situations where I am a leader, help me to submit my pride and ambition to you and lead with love for those who follow.

 

COVID-19 – PA Dept. of Health Guidance – November 18, 2020

Here is the latest map of coronavirus intensity per county in Pennsylvania as of today at:  https://covid19risk.biosci.gatech.edu/) :

 

To aid you in your decision-making in response to this map, the PA Dept. of Health has published this helpful decision flowchart:

Follow the flowchart and stay healthy!

Central Church

Leading with Love: The Meaning of Agape

Key Bible Verse:  Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.  – 1 Peter 4:8

Dig Deeper:  Ephesians 4:1-6

Agape is unconditional.  It is a decision, a matter of will.

The key principle is to think of agape as a verb, not an emotion.

Agape love is the foundation for the best and noblest relationships that humans are capable of.  It is deliberate and unconditional love that is the result of choices and behaviors rather than feelings and emotions.

In that regard, agape love is about the values we embrace as a way of life, and it is a determination to behave in a certain way that stems from our regard for other human beings, regardless of how we may feel about them.

For leaders, demonstrating agape love is about behavior, not emotion.  This is a critical distinction that explains why agape love can be the motivating force of a successful organization.

Agape love can exist in the most hostile environments—even work!  Agape can stand the test of time.  In fact, with agape love, you can dislike someone or be frustrated with them and still treat them with love.

Agape love will promote healthy relationships among employees and their leaders, allowing people to perform at their very best, all the while withstanding the pressure and tension that can exist in a high-performance organization.

—Joel Manby in Love Works

 

My Response: How can I cultivate agape love in all my relationships?

 

Thought to Apply:  To love we must give of ourselves, of our time, … of whatever it takes to show love; for giving is fundamental to the biblical idea of love.—Jay E. Adams (author)

Adapted from Love Works (Zondervan, 2012)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, in the situations where I am a leader, help me to submit my pride and ambition to you and lead with love for those who follow.

 

 

Leading with Love: Love in Action

Key Bible Verse:  “Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you.  This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.”  – Matthew 7:12

Dig Deeper:  Matthew 5:43-48

I could accept the fact that HFE employees loved working for the Herschends, and even that the Herschends loved them back.  But I was struggling with the word love and how to define it in a way the employees would understand and accept.  Then I remembered a talk I’d heard many years before.

On our wedding day, our pastor Terry told my wife, Marki, and me, “You can’t imagine this today, but there will come a day when you are frustrated with each other; you may not feel like you love each other.  You may not even feel like you like each other in the moment.  Joel and Marki, that’s when you need to behave like you love each other.”

Treating someone with love regardless of how you feel about that person is a very powerful principle.  This type of love is the basis for all healthy relationships, bringing out the best in ourselves and others.  It can make us great spouses, great parents, and great friends.  Great leaders too.

All too often, however, when we read the word love, we automatically think about romantic love—the emotional kind.

What I’m talking about, however, is love the verb, agape in Greek, not the emotion.  I’m talking about actions, not feelings.

—Joel Manby in Love Works

 

My Response: How do my actions demonstrate love for those I lead?

 

Thought to Apply:  Selfless love serves for the sake of the one being served, and serves in the way it likes being served—whether it ever receives such service or not.—John Macarthur (pastor)

Adapted from Love Works (Zondervan, 2012)

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, in the situations where I am a leader, help me to submit my pride and ambition to you and lead with love for those who follow.

 

 

Leading with Love: Beyond the Bottom Line

Key Bible Verse:  And masters, treat your servants considerately.  Be fair with them.  Don’t forget for a minute that you, too, serve a Master—God in heaven.  – Colossians 4:1, The message

Dig Deeper: 1 Peter 5:1-4

Before I came to HFE, I had been living by the numbers because numbers were all my leaders seemed to care about.  If I had any deeper principles, I needed to check them at the company door, because once I was at work, it was all about financial performance.

When I performed well, I was rewarded and respected.  When I failed, I felt like I was kicked to the curb.  It was that simple.

Inside I longed for a better way.  I wanted to care about the people I worked with and for.  I wanted to work somewhere that rejected the false dichotomy between profit and people or profit and principles.

But I had been in business long enough to know that was a nearly impossible dream.

My experience at HFE has revolutionized the way I see leadership.  I am convinced that leading with love is the best way to run an organization.  Any organization.

The bottom line is best served when leaders lead with love.

I understand that this is a controversial claim, but I also now understand that it is true.  Love isn’t a feeling, but an action, an action by which leaders and entire organizations can experience almost unimaginable success and personal fulfillment.

 

My Response:  What’s my initial reaction to the idea of leading with love?  Why do I feel this way?

Adapted from Love Works (Zondervan, 2012)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, in the situations where I am a leader, help me to submit my pride and ambition to you and lead with love for those who follow.

 

 

 

Daily Bible Readings – Revised Common Lectionary – November 16-21, 2020

Here for your personal daily devotions are the daily lectionary readings for November 16-21, 2020:

• • Monday, November 16, 2020:
    Semi-continuous: Psalm 83:1-4, 9-10, 17-18; Judges 4:8-24; Romans 2:1-11
    Complementary: Psalm 9:1-14; Zechariah 1:7-17; Romans 2:1-11

• • Tuesday, November 17, 2020:
    Semi-continuous: Psalm 83:1-4, 9-10, 17-18; Exodus 2:1-10; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-18
    Complementary: Psalm 9:1-14; Zechariah 2:1-5; 5:1-4; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-18

• • Wednesday, November 18, 2020:
    Semi-continuous: Psalm 83:1-4, 9-10, 17-18; Esther 7:1-10; Matthew 24:45-51
    Complementary: Psalm 9:1-14; Job 16:1-21; Matthew 24:45-51

• • Thursday, November 19, 2020:
    Semi-continuous: Psalm 100; Genesis 48:15-22; Revelation 14:1-11
    Complementary: Psalm 95:1-7a; 1 Kings 22:13-23; Revelation 14:1-11

• • Friday, November 20, 2020:
    Semi-continuous: Psalm 100; Isaiah 40:1-11; Revelation 22:1-9
    Complementary: Psalm 95:1-7a; 1 Chronicles 17:1-15; Revelation 22:1-9

• • Saturday, November 21, 2020:
    Semi-continuous: Psalm 100; Ezekiel 34:25-31; Matthew 12:46-50
    Complementary: Psalm 95:1-7a; Isaiah 44:21-28; Matthew 12:46-50

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What is the Revised Common Lectionary?

The Revised Common Lectionary is a three-year cycle of weekly lections used to varying degrees by the vast majority of mainline Protestant churches in Canada and the United States.  The RCL is built around the seasons of the Church Year, and includes four lections for each Sunday, as well as additional readings for major feast days.

During most of the year, the lections are: a reading from the Hebrew Bible, a Psalm, a reading from the Epistles, and a Gospel reading.  During the season of Easter, the Hebrew Bible lection is usually replaced with one from the Acts of the Apostles.

The seasons of the Church Year reflect the life of Christ.  Consequently, the gospel lections for each Sunday provide the focus for that day. The other lections for a given day generally have a thematic relationship to the gospel reading for that day, although this is not always the case.

In Ordinary Time, the Revised Common Lectionary offers two sets of readings for the lessons from the Hebrew Bible.

• One set proceeds mostly continuously, giving the story of the Patriarchs and the Exodus in Year A, the monarchial narratives in Year B, and readings from the Prophets in Year C.
• In the other set of readings for Ordinary Time, the readings from the Hebrew Bible are thematically related to the gospel lections. Denominations or local churches generally use either the semicontinuous readings or the thematic readings during Ordinary Time. They do not typically move back and forth between the two over the course of a single season.

The gospel readings for each year come from one of the synoptic gospels according to the following pattern:

• Year A – Matthew
• Year B – Mark
• Year C – Luke

Readings from the Gospel of John can be found throughout the RCL.

Central Church

Central Church – Online Worship Service – Sunday, November 15, 2020

On this 24th Sunday after Pentecost, when the coronavirus prevents many of us from gathering in Central Church’s Sanctuary to worship in body, let us join together in spirit for with our online worship experience!

To begin, simply click on the photo below to join with the folks who have already made their way into our digital Sanctuary:

Central Church

Leading with Love: A Different Kind of Leadership

Who Said It … Joel Manby

Joel Manby is president and CEO of Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation (HFE). He was featured on the hit CBS reality-TV series, Undercover Boss, where he and the employees of HFE demonstrated their unique approach to leadership to millions of viewers.

Joel is the author of Love Works. He and his wife, Marki, have four daughters and live in suburban Atlanta.

 

What he Said … A Different Kind of Leadership

More than 18 million viewers saw HFE’s episode of Undercover Boss, making it the highest-rated program on CBS that week and the second most popular show on any network, trailing only American Idol.

People who witnessed our employees in action wanted us to know that they wished their own places of work were more like what they had seen on Undercover Boss—in other words, more respectful, cooperative, joyful and, well, more loving.

The most satisfying part about appearing on Undercover Boss was that it confirmed the wise management philosophy that the leaders at HFE had been nurturing for half a century: leading with love.

Leading with love is counterintuitive in today’s business environment because it turns many so-called leadership principles upside-down. Yet the outpouring of support from people who had never even heard of HFE convinced me that while we might be doing something slightly crazy by leading with love, we were also doing something that people were hungry to be part of.

 

Key Study Passage:  1 Corinthians 13:1-8

Adapted from Love Works (Zondervan, 2012)

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, in the situations where I am a leader, help me to submit my pride and ambition to you and lead with love for those who follow.

Develop Your Spiritual Insight – Identifying False Teachers

Jude devotes his short letter to warning Christians everywhere about those who live in opposition to God and his followers.  They twist God’s words, he says, seeking to deceive and destroy the unwary.  

But since God’s Word and the gift of eternal life have infinite value and have been entrusted to us, he urges us to work at grasping his truth and faithfully defending it.

Interact with God’s Word

Jude 1:12-13, 17-21

1. How are people whose interpretations veer from balanced biblical teaching like reefs? … like irresponsible shepherds? … like clouds that produce no rain? … like fruitless trees? … like ocean breakers? … like planets?
2. To what apostolic warnings (v. 17) might Jude have been referring?  (See Acts 20:29-30; 1 Timothy 4:1-3; 2 Timothy 3:1-5.)
3. Why did Jude (v. 18) consider him and his readers already in “the last times”?
4. How (v. 19) do people who “follow their natural instincts” instead of relying on the Holy Spirit create divisions in the church?
5. What defenses against error (v. 20) does Jude mention?  What is the doctrinal and ethical core that comprises our “most holy faith?”

 

Spend Time in Prayer

Ask God for a balanced understanding of his Word that helps you confidently navigate complex situations based on your grasp of the basic principles he has revealed.

Jude 1:12-13, 17-21

12 When these people eat with you in your fellowship meals commemorating the Lord’s love, they are like dangerous reefs that can shipwreck you.  They are like shameless shepherds who care only for themselves.  They are like clouds blowing over the land without giving any rain.  They are like trees in autumn that are doubly dead, for they bear no fruit and have been pulled up by the roots.  13 They are like wild waves of the sea, churning up the foam of their shameful deeds.  They are like wandering stars, doomed forever to blackest darkness.

17 But you, my dear friends, must remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ said.  18 They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to satisfy their ungodly desires.  19 These people are the ones who are creating divisions among you.  They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God’s Spirit in them.

20 But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, 21 and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life.  In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God’s love.

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, help me to so saturate my outlook with your Word that I readily spot whatever counters its teaching.

 

Central Church on WBVP Sunday!

Although Central Church has resumed its in-person worship services at 11 am on Sundays, some people may not yet be able to attend due to COVID-19 concerns.

For anyone who does not feel comfortable with attending an in-person worship service, tune in at 10:30 A.M. on Sunday, November 15, to hear a recorded version of this week’s message from Central Church by Pastor Jan!

Here’s where to tune in:

• AM Radio – WBVP at 1230

• AM Radio – WMBA at 1460

• FM Radio – WBVP/WMBA at 99.3; and

• Online –   The Beaver County Radio Live Audio Stream at https://radio.securenetsystems.net/cirruscontent/WBVP

Be sure to tune in this Sunday at 10:30!

Revised Common Lectionary – Bible Passages for Sunday, November 15, 2020

In preparation for our worship service this Sunday, for both in-person and online, here are the designated Bible passages from the Revised Common Lectionary.

Pastor Jan’s sermon will focus upon the passage concerning the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25: 14-30.

Judges 4:1-7

4:1 The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, after Ehud died.

4:2 So the LORD sold them into the hand of King Jabin of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; the commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-ha-goiim.

4:3 Then the Israelites cried out to the LORD for help; for he had nine hundred chariots of iron, and had oppressed the Israelites cruelly twenty years.

4:4 At that time Deborah, a prophetess, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel.

4:5 She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came up to her for judgment.

4:6 She sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “The LORD, the God of Israel, commands you, ‘Go, take position at Mount Tabor, bringing ten thousand from the tribe of Naphtali and the tribe of Zebulun.

4:7 I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to meet you by the Wadi Kishon with his chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your hand.'”

Psalm 123

123:1 To you I lift up my eyes, O you who are enthroned in the heavens!

123:2 As the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the LORD our God, until he has mercy upon us.

123:3 Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy upon us, for we have had more than enough of contempt.

123:4 Our soul has had more than its fill of the scorn of those who are at ease, of the contempt of the proud.

Zephaniah 1:7, 12-18

1:7 Be silent before the Lord GOD! For the day of the LORD is at hand; the LORD has prepared a sacrifice, he has consecrated his guests.

1:12 At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and I will punish the people who rest complacently on their dregs, those who say in their hearts, “The LORD will not do good, nor will he do harm.”

1:13 Their wealth shall be plundered, and their houses laid waste. Though they build houses, they shall not inhabit them; though they plant vineyards, they shall not drink wine from them.

1:14 The great day of the LORD is near, near and hastening fast; the sound of the day of the LORD is bitter, the warrior cries aloud there.

1:15 That day will be a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish, a day of ruin and devastation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness,

1:16 a day of trumpet blast and battle cry against the fortified cities and against the lofty battlements.

1:17 I will bring such distress upon people that they shall walk like the blind; because they have sinned against the LORD, their blood shall be poured out like dust, and their flesh like dung.

1:18 Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to save them on the day of the Lord’s wrath; in the fire of his passion the whole earth shall be consumed; for a full, a terrible end he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth.

Psalm 90:1-8, (9-11), 12

90:1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.

90:2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

90:3 You turn us back to dust, and say, “Turn back, you mortals.”

90:4 For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past, or like a watch in the night.

90:5 You sweep them away; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning;

90:6 in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers.

90:7 For we are consumed by your anger; by your wrath we are overwhelmed.

90:8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your countenance.

90:9 For all our days pass away under your wrath; our years come to an end like a sigh.

90:10 The days of our life are seventy years, or perhaps eighty, if we are strong; even then their span is only toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.

90:11 Who considers the power of your anger? Your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.

90:12 So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart.

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

5:1 Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you.

5:2 For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.

5:3 When they say, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape!

5:4 But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief;

5:5 for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness.

5:6 So then let us not fall asleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober;

5:7 for those who sleep sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night.

5:8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.

5:9 For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

5:10 who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him.

5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.

Matthew 25:14-30

25:14 “For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them;

25:15 to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away.

25:16 The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents.

25:17 In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents.

25:18 But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

25:19 After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them.

25:20 Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’

25:21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

25:22 And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’

25:23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

25:24 Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed;

25:25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’

25:26 But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter?

25:27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest.

25:28 So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents.

25:29 For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.

25:30 As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'”

COVID-19 – Beaver County Moves from Moderate to SUBSTANTIAL

Here are the weekly COVID-19 statistics for Beaver County, PA as of November 13, 2020.

As you can see, the two metrics have increased substantially again since last week, which now clearly shows that we are in the Third Wave in our area. 

• The Incidence Rate is the highest it has been since the readings were published starting in August, and has crossed from Moderate into Substantial. 
• The PCR Positivity Rate has also moved to a new high from Low to Moderate.

• Beaver County is now classified as SUBSTANTIAL.

(If either metric is Substantial, the PA Dept. of Health’s recommended school instructional model is Full Remove Learning.)

• As the pandemic’s severity increases in our area to new highs, our dedicated Trustees are redoubling their efforts to ensure our building is disinfected prior to every worship service or feeding ministry event.

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https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/coronavirus/Pages/Monitoring-Dashboard.aspx

 

Develop Your Spiritual Insight – Deceptive Spirits

Key Bible Verse:  Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teaching that come from demons.  – 1 Timothy 4:1

Bonus Reading:  Jude 1:12-13

The Greek word translated as “deceptive” in today’s Key Bible verse is planos, the word from which our English word “planet” is derived.  The ancient Greeks called those bright orbs deceivers.

Why?

In ancient times, the navigators of ships knew that they could, with reliability, sight in on most stars to accurately determine their location and thereby sail the right course to their destination.

They also learned that the “deceivers” (planoi)—the wandering stars—would only lead them to confusion or destruction if they tried to determine their position by them.

They, of course, didn’t know that those “stars” were actually planets that revolved around the sun.

It isn’t difficult to see why the Holy Spirit stirred the apostle Paul to use this word to warn us about the demonic enterprises of these last days.

We dare not take our directions from the no-such-thing-as-absolute-truth relativism of our culture’s attitudes toward almost everything.

And we would be wise to see the profound analogy between the erratic movement of a non-light-producing planet and the deceiving spirits of this world.

—Jack Hayford in The Anatomy of Seduction

 

My Response: Why is succumbing to deception often followed by moral compromise?

 

Thought to Apply: We are oftener deceived by being told some truth than none. —Fulke Greville (English courtier)

Adapted from The Anatomy of Seduction (Regal, 2004)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, help me to so saturate my outlook with your Word that I readily spot whatever counters its teaching.

 

 

Develop Your Spiritual Insight – A Godsend?

Key Bible Verse:  “But you may wonder, ‘How will we know whether or not a prophecy is from the Lord?'”  – Deuteronomy 18:21

Bonus Readings:  Deuteronomy 18:22; Jeremiah 14:14; Galatians 1:8

Phil told my wife and me about attending a meeting of two or three thousand people where a priest said, “A young man is here fighting leukemia.”  Phil was fighting leukemia but thought that in such a crowd there probably were several fighting leukemia.

But the priest continued, “This man is also going through a divorce.”  Phil thought, Well, that’s two for two.”

Then the leader predicted that this young man would have chemo treatments and return “next September to testify to answered prayer.”  That’s what happened: Phil returned to testify to his perfect healing.

Was this priest a true prophet of God?  I don’t think so.

Though an inaccurate prediction disqualifies a prophet, a correct prediction doesn’t automatically prove that the man or woman is to be followed.

I asked Phil, “How would this man answer this question: What does a person have to do to enter heaven?”  Phil answered, “He’d say that you have to follow God and be a good person.”

That, of course is “another gospel.”

—Erwin Lutzer in Who Are You to Judge?

 

My Response: How does a spokesperson’s lifestyle bear on the validity of his message?

 

Thought to Apply: The gift of discernment has been neglected in charismatic circles, but is the gift that most needs to be sought and cultivated, because its exercise is the key to the right use of all the rest.—Tom Smail

Adapted from Who Are You to Judge? (Moody, 2002)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, help me to so saturate my outlook with your Word that I readily spot whatever counters its teaching.

 

A Prayer for Our Veterans

Happy Veterans’ Day

Develop Your Spiritual Insight – Religious Campus Tour

Key Bible Verse:  They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly.  Stay away from people like that!  – 2 Timothy 3:5

Bonus Reading:  Psalm 119:160; Luke 22:70; John 10:30; John 14:6; Acts 4:12

Let’s listen in on a few classes at a so-called Christian college.

• An Old Testament Studies classroom: Professor Rationalist says, “These legends—the creation account, Noah and the Flood, Moses and the parting of the Red Sea, Jesus’ miracles—are symbolic stories to teach principles. Scientists offer no verification that any of these events really happened.”

 

• A New Testament Studies classroom: Professor Skeptic says, “Jesus was a popular teacher in his day, but we have no evidence that divinity should be ascribed to him.”

 

• A Religion 101 classroom: Professor Universalist says, “There are many religious roads, but they all lead to God.  All sincere people of faith—Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, New Age—will arrive at the same glorified place.  It’s bigoted to believe otherwise.”

If anything, deceptive teaching is harder to discern when professors mix their own non-literal views of Scripture and religious humanism beliefs with biblical Christianity.

Don’t think that Satan considers colleges with a Christian heritage off limits.  He’s prepared to use any tactic to distract and deceive you from being on that narrow way that leads to life.

—David Wheaton in University of Destruction

 

My Response: One clue that a professing Christian may not be a possessing one is …

 

Thought to Apply: God never meant for man to scale the heavens by strides of human wisdom.—William Cowper

Adapted from University of Destruction (Bethany, 2005)

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, help me to so saturate my outlook with your Word that I readily spot whatever counters its teaching.

 

COVID-19 Update – November 10, 2020

Here is a quick update on the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic from today’s New York Times.

• The bad news is that we clearly  appear to be in the Third Wave, with much higher levels of cases and deaths expected in the next 2 months.

• The good news is that treatments continue to improve and the development of vaccines continue to move forward.

• At Central Church, we’re continuing to take every reasonable precaution and are disinfecting every day to stay as safe as possible.

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A Very Mixed Picture

There are two very different coronavirus stories happening now.

The first story is grim: Worldwide, the virus is spreading more rapidly than at any other point. The U.S. and Europe are both setting records for new confirmed cases, while South America, North Africa, India and other regions are coping with serious outbreaks.

The spread is bad enough that harsh measures — like again shutting some restaurants or banning indoor gatherings — may be necessary to get it under control. Much of Europe has taken such steps in recent weeks. President Trump has opposed them. But President-elect Joe Biden, in appointing a 13-member virus task force yesterday, emphasized that he would take a radically different approach and base his policy on scientists’ advice.

“These are some of the smartest people in infectious diseases,” my colleague Apoorva Mandavilli, a science reporter, said about the task force’s members. Biden, who has worn a mask in public for months, may also be able to increase mask-wearing by delivering a more consistent message about it than Trump has, Apoorva added. Yesterday, Biden implored Americans to wear masks, saying: “Do it for yourself. Do it for your neighbor.”

No matter what, though, much of the world will probably be coping with severe outbreaks — and thousands more deaths each day — for months to come.

The second story is much more encouraging. It’s the rapid progress that medical researchers are making on both potential vaccines and treatments that can ameliorate the virus’s worst symptoms.

Pfizer announced yesterday that early data showed its vaccine prevented Covid-19 in more than 90 percent of trial volunteers. Other companies, including Moderna and Novavax have also reported encouraging news about their vaccines. (The Times’s Carl Zimmer and Katie Thomas answer some common vaccine questions here.)

Even before any vaccine becomes widely available, virus treatment is already improving, thanks to earlier diagnoses and drugs like dexamethasone and remdesivir. The Food and Drug Administration granted emergency authorization yesterday to an Eli Lilly treatment that doctors recently gave to Chris Christie, the former New Jersey governor.

The improving quality of treatments is evident in the death rate: Only about 1.5 percent of diagnosed cases have been fatal in recent weeks, compared with 1.7 percent in late July and early August, and 7 percent during the virus’s initial surge in the early spring.

As these charts show, U.S. deaths have stayed in a narrow range — albeit at a terribly high level — even though cases have been surging since September:

By The New York Times | Sources: State and local health agencies and hospitals

By The New York Times | Sources: State and local health agencies and hospitals

The full picture, via Ashish Jha, dean of Brown University’s public health school: “We all need to keep two seemingly contradictory facts in mind: 1. We are entering the hardest days of the pandemic. The next two months will see a lot of infections and deaths; 2. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Today, that light got a bit brighter.”

Central Church

Develop Your Spiritual Insight – Secular Campus Tour

Key Bible Verse:  There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.  – Proverbs 14:12

Bonus Reading:  Genesis 1:1; Romans 3:10-12; John 17:17

Poke your head into a few university classrooms to sample what the professors are saying.

• A biology classroom: “As a result of a cataclysmic explosion, the universe came into existence ten billion years ago.  The fossil record shows that invertebrates made the leap from water to land two million years before humans.”

If you believe Professor Evolutionist’s claim that you are the product of random chance and evolution, what degree of purpose and meaning could your life possibly have?

• A sociology classroom: “Humans are inherently good.  If everyone were given enough education and financial resources, the result would be a united utopian world.”

If you believe Professor Humanist’s thesis, how do you explain the never-ending cycle of sin in the world—crime, violence, greed, pride, rape, lust, etc.?

• A values and ethics classroom: “What’s wrong for you may be right for someone else in the same situation.  Who are you to judge someone else?  Divisive religion-based concepts of right and wrong only foster guilt and hate rather than tolerance.”

If you believe Professor Relativist’s assertion, on what basis will you make your moral choices?

Now contrast their trendy groupthink with God’s Word in today’s Bonus Readings.

•  Genesis 1:1 –  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

•  Romans 3:10-12 –

As it is written:

“There is no one righteous, not even one;
¹¹     there is no one who understands;
there is no one who seeks God.
¹² All have turned away,
they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
not even one.”^[a]

•  John 17:17 –  Sanctify them by^[a] the truth; your word is truth.

—David Wheaton in University of Destruction

 

My Response: Is my worldview shaped by current experts or scriptural perspectives?

 

Thought to Apply: Intelligence and education can ascertain facts. Wisdom can discover the truth.—Max De Pree

Adapted from University of Destruction (Bethany, 2005)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, help me to so saturate my outlook with your Word that I readily spot whatever counters its teaching.

 

Develop Your Spiritual Insight – In vs. Of

Key Bible Verse:  Be innocent as babies when it comes to evil, but be mature in understanding matters of this kind.  – 1 Corinthians 14:20

Bonus Reading:  1 Cor. 5: 9-13

I know a man who desperately needed to buy a warehouse, but when a liquor company offered to sell him one, he balked.  He asked me if he should buy it.

“There’s no sin in purchasing real estate from the sinful,” I told him, “unless you cheat someone else or use it sinfully yourself.”

“Yes,” he objected. “But what about using my money to prosper them.”

“Look,” I explained. “We live in a complicated world.  You buy groceries at stores that sell liquor, fly on airplanes that give it away in first class, and stay in hotels that have bars.

In the world isn’t the same as of it.”

On the other hand, a deep, close bond in business or a relationship with an unsaved partner is rife with danger.  Unbelievers, sensing they’ll also be blessed for the sake of the righteous, often want to partner with Christians.  Potiphar and Pharaoh saw that hope in Joseph, Nebuchadnezzar saw it in Daniel.

The biblical admonition, “don’t team up with those who are unbelievers” (2 Cor. 6:14) is ignored at great risk.  Ahab was spared because he was with Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 18: 1-27), but Jehoshaphat nearly died because he was with Ahab.  Don’t link your destiny with another uncommitted to the God you serve.

—Mark Rutland in God of the Valleys

 

My Response: To function in the world without becoming aligned with it, I need to …

Adapted from God of the Valleys (Servant, 2000)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, help me to so saturate my outlook with your Word that I readily spot whatever counters its teaching.

 

Daily Bible Readings – Revised Common Lectionary – November 9-14, 2020

Here for your personal daily devotions are the daily lectionary readings for November 9-14, 2020:

• • • Monday, November 9, 2020:
      Semi-continuous: Psalm 78; Joshua 24:25-33; 1 Corinthians 14:20-25
      Complementary: Psalm 63; Amos 8:7-14; 1 Corinthians 14:20-25

• • • Tuesday, November 10, 2020:
      Semi-continuous: Psalm 78; Nehemiah 8:1-12; 1 Thessalonians 3:6-13
      Complementary: Psalm 63; Joel 1:1-14; 1 Thessalonians 3:6-13

• • • Wednesday, November 11, 2020:
      Semi-continuous: Psalm 78; Jeremiah 31:31-34; Matthew 24:29-35
      Complementary: Psalm 63; Joel 3:9-21; Matthew 24:29-35

• • • Thursday, November 12, 2020:
      Semi-continuous: Psalm 123; Judges 2:6-15; Revelation 16:1-7
      Complementary: Psalm 90:1-8, 12; Ezekiel 6:1-14; Revelation 16:1-7

• • • Friday, November 13, 2020:
      Semi-continuous: Psalm 123; Judges 2:16-23; Revelation 16:8-21
      Complementary: Psalm 90:1-8, 12; Ezekiel 7:1-9; Revelation 16:8-21

• • • Saturday, November 14, 2020:
      Semi-continuous: Psalm 123; Judges 5:1-12; Matthew 12:43-45
      Complementary: Psalm 90:1-8, 12; Ezekiel 7:10-27; Matthew 12:43-45

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What is the Revised Common Lectionary?

The Revised Common Lectionary is a three-year cycle of weekly lections used to varying degrees by the vast majority of mainline Protestant churches in Canada and the United States.  The RCL is built around the seasons of the Church Year, and includes four lections for each Sunday, as well as additional readings for major feast days.

During most of the year, the lections are: a reading from the Hebrew Bible, a Psalm, a reading from the Epistles, and a Gospel reading.  During the season of Easter, the Hebrew Bible lection is usually replaced with one from the Acts of the Apostles.

The seasons of the Church Year reflect the life of Christ.  Consequently, the gospel lections for each Sunday provide the focus for that day. The other lections for a given day generally have a thematic relationship to the gospel reading for that day, although this is not always the case.

In Ordinary Time, the Revised Common Lectionary offers two sets of readings for the lessons from the Hebrew Bible.

• One set proceeds mostly continuously, giving the story of the Patriarchs and the Exodus in Year A, the monarchial narratives in Year B, and readings from the Prophets in Year C.
• In the other set of readings for Ordinary Time, the readings from the Hebrew Bible are thematically related to the gospel lections. Denominations or local churches generally use either the semicontinuous readings or the thematic readings during Ordinary Time. They do not typically move back and forth between the two over the course of a single season.

The gospel readings for each year come from one of the synoptic gospels according to the following pattern:

• Year A – Matthew
• Year B – Mark
• Year C – Luke

Readings from the Gospel of John can be found throughout the RCL.

Central Church

Central Church – Online Worship Service – Sunday, November 8, 2020

On this 23rd Sunday after Pentecost, when the coronavirus prevents many of us from gathering in Central Church’s Sanctuary to worship in body, let us join together in spirit for with our online worship experience!

To begin, simply click on the photo below to join with the folks who have already made their way into our digital Sanctuary:

Central Church

Develop Your Spiritual Insight – Steep Learning Curve

Who Said It … John Ensor

John Ensor is Executive Director of the Urban Initiative Program of Heartbeat Inter-national.  H.I. trains Christian communities in providing life-saving, life-changing assistance to women and couples unprepared for pregnancy.

John is completing a two-year effort to establish ultrasound-equipped Pregnancy Help Clinics in needy neighborhoods of Miami, a city with nearly 40 abortion facilities.

John previously served as a pastor and founded a network of six clinics in the Boston area.

 

What He Said … Steep Learning Curve

Because I wanted it badly, I looked right past the red flags.  I ended up back where I started, but poorer, embarrassed, and feeling used and stupid.

I’m talking about a used car.  I went online and was defrauded out of $4,000.  

Proverbs 14:15 had me fingered: “Only simpletons believe everything they’re told!  The prudent carefully consider their steps.”

The webmaster knew about people at their predatory worst who feed on the gullible.  So right there on the website, in a section about online fraud, he spelled out the sure signs to look for.

He also provided straightforward guidelines for doing things right when buying a used car online.  But never dreaming I’d be a victim of fraud, I failed to read the link before barging ahead.

One Proverb (Proverbs 14:12) warns about the path that seems right but ends in death.  I think this refers to our tendency to follow our own judgment without informing it with the wisdom of others or instructing it with a sense of right and wrong, wise and foolish.

Adapted from Doing Things Right in Matters of the Heart (Crossway, 2007)

 

Prayer for the Week:  Lord, help me to so saturate my outlook with your Word that I readily spot whatever counters its teaching.

Grasping God’s Grace – God’s Gift

Paul begins and ends his letter to the Ephesians (Ephesians 1:2and 6:24) with a prayer that they would share in God’s grace.

The most important things in life—forgiveness, a right relationship with God, acceptance into God’s family, eternal life, the transforming power of his Holy Spirit—are all God’s gifts for those made his own by his grace.

Believers should respond by joyfully praising God for this grace and by letting their lives reflect their gratitude. In the Greek language, significantly, the words grace, joy, and thanksgiving are related.

Interact with God’s Word

Ephesians 2:4-9:

1.   When, according to verse 8, was God’s grace applied to your life?
2.   What (v. 5) was your status before God’s grace penetrated your life? What is it since you were saved?
3.   How much of this transformation (vv. 8-9) can you take credit for?
4.     When someone gives you a gift, do you say, “That’s very nice—now how much do I owe you?” What is the appropriate response?
5.     Have you felt obligated to try to work your way to God?
6.     Do you think of yourself as “Exhibit A” of the “incredible wealth” of God’s grace and kindness (v. 7)? Should you?

 

Spend Time in Prayer

Thank God for taking the initiative to provide for your salvation even though you had done nothing to deserve it.

 

Ephesians 2:4-9

4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead.  (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)  6 For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus.  7 So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.

8 God saved you by his grace when you believed.  And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.  9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  I’m blown away, Lord, by your gift of salvation, which I could neither earn nor repay.  I’ll be forever grateful.

 

 

Central Church on WBVP Sunday!

Although Central Church has resumed its in-person worship services at 11 am on Sundays, some people may not yet be able to attend due to COVID-19 concerns.

For anyone who does not feel comfortable with attending an in-person worship service, tune in at 10:30 A.M. on Sunday, November 8, to hear a recorded version of this week’s message from Central Church by Pastor Jan!

Here’s where to tune in:

• AM Radio – WBVP at 1230

• AM Radio – WMBA at 1460

• FM Radio – WBVP/WMBA at 99.3; and

• Online –   The Beaver County Radio Live Audio Stream at https://radio.securenetsystems.net/cirruscontent/WBVP

Be sure to tune in this Sunday at 10:30!

Revised Common Lectionary – Bible Passages for Sunday, November 8, 2020

In preparation for our worship service this Sunday, for both in-person and online, here are the designated Bible passages from the Revised Common Lectionary.

Pastor Jan’s sermon will focus upon the passage concerning the wise and foolish bridesmaids in Matthew 25: 1-13.

Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25

24:1 Then Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel; and they presented themselves before God.

24:2 And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Long ago your ancestors–Terah and his sons Abraham and Nahor–lived beyond the Euphrates and served other gods.

24:3a Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River and led him through all the land of Canaan and made his offspring many.

24:14 “Now therefore revere the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD.

24:15 Now if you are unwilling to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”

24:16 Then the people answered, “Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods;

24:17 for it is the LORD our God who brought us and our ancestors up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight. He protected us along all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed;

24:18 and the LORD drove out before us all the peoples, the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve the LORD, for he is our God.”

24:19 But Joshua said to the people, “You cannot serve the LORD, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins.

24:20 If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm, and consume you, after having done you good.”

24:21 And the people said to Joshua, “No, we will serve the LORD!”

24:22 Then Joshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the LORD, to serve him.” And they said, “We are witnesses.”

24:23 He said, “Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel.”

24:24 The people said to Joshua, “The LORD our God we will serve, and him we will obey.”

24:25 So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made statutes and ordinances for them at Shechem.

Psalm 78:1-7

78:1 Give ear, O my people, to my teaching; incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

78:2 I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings from of old,

78:3 things that we have heard and known, that our ancestors have told us.

78:4 We will not hide them from their children; we will tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the LORD, and his might, and the wonders that he has done.

78:5 He established a decree in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our ancestors to teach to their children;

78:6 that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and rise up and tell them to their children,

78:7 so that they should set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments.

Wisdom of Solomon 6:12-16

6:12 Wisdom is radiant and unfading, and she is easily discerned by those who love her, and is found by those who seek her.

6:13 She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.

6:14 One who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty, for she will be found sitting at the gate.

6:15 To fix one’s thought on her is perfect understanding, and one who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care,

6:16 because she goes about seeking those worthy of her, and she graciously appears to them in their paths, and meets them in every thought.

Amos 5:18-24

5:18 Alas for you who desire the day of the LORD! Why do you want the day of the LORD? It is darkness, not light;

5:19 as if someone fled from a lion, and was met by a bear; or went into the house and rested a hand against the wall, and was bitten by a snake.

5:20 Is not the day of the LORD darkness, not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?

5:21 I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

5:22 Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; and the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals I will not look upon.

5:23 Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps.

5:24 But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everflowing stream.

Wisdom of Solomon 6:17-20

6:17 The beginning of wisdom is the most sincere desire for instruction, and concern for instruction is love of her,

6:18 and love of her is the keeping of her laws, and giving heed to her laws is assurance of immortality,

6:19 and immortality brings one near to God;

6:20 so the desire for wisdom leads to a kingdom.

Psalm 70

70:1 Be pleased, O God, to deliver me. O LORD, make haste to help me!

70:2 Let those be put to shame and confusion who seek my life. Let those be turned back and brought to dishonor who desire to hurt me.

70:3 Let those who say, “Aha, Aha!” turn back because of their shame.

70:4 Let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you. Let those who love your salvation say evermore, “God is great!”

70:5 But I am poor and needy; hasten to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer; O LORD, do not delay!

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

4:13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.

4:14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died.

4:15 For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have died.

4:16 For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call and with the sound of God’s trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

4:17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with the Lord forever.

4:18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Matthew 25:1-13

25:1 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.

25:2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.

25:3 When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them;

25:4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.

25:5 As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept.

25:6 But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’

25:7 Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps.

25:8 The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’

25:9 But the wise replied, ‘No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’

25:10 And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut.

25:11 Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’

25:12 But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’

25:13 Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

Grasping God’s Grace – Bow-wow

Key Bible Verse:  How kind the Lord is! So merciful, this God of ours!  –Psalm 116:5

Bonus Reading:  Psalm 116:8, 12-13

We used to have two dogs.  They belonged to my son, but when he wasn’t home, I took care of them.

These dogs had a good life.  They found food sitting on their plates, got fresh water every day, and had a warm spot to sleep.

One day I was trying to get one of the dogs to move while I fed it, and it growled at me.  I looked at that brother and thought, You’re a fool. I’m here feeding and watering you at no cost to you.  I don’t want to do it, don’t need to do it, don’t feel like doing it.  And you’re growling at me?

That dog didn’t understand that he ate, drank, and had a place to sleep by grace.  The only thing that dog should have said to me when I came out was, “Thank you, bow-wow,” because everything he had was by grace.

When you decide to live by a kingdom agenda, you no longer say, “This is my food, and you’d better give it to me, God.  You’d better supply my drink and keep clothes on my back.  This is my house, and you’d better keep it paid for.”

The only thing you say when you get up in the morning is, “Thank you, God, bow-wow.”

—Tony Evans in The Kingdom Agenda: What a Way to Live!

 

My Response:  Do my expectations of God reveal a taking for granted of his amazing grace?

 

Thought to Apply: Thou hast given so much to me, give me one thing more—a grateful heart … whose pulse may be thy praise. —George Herbert (English pastor & poet)

Adapted from The Kingdom Agenda: What a Way to Live! (Word, 1997)

 

 

Prayer for the Week:  I’m blown away, Lord, by your gift of salvation, which I could neither earn nor repay.  I’ll be forever grateful.